Even if one ate a forbidden food unwittingly and his intention in eating was for the sake of heaven, i.e., in order to serve G‑d with the energy derived from it;

(Had the food been permitted, the very act of eating for the sake of heaven would suffice to extract the good from the evil of the food’s vitality, as explained above. In this instance, however, forbidden food was eaten for the sake of heaven.)

וגם פעל ועשה כן, וקרא והתפלל בכח אכילה ההיא

moreover, even if he actually carried out his intention, having studied and prayed with the energy derived from that food;

(Again, had the food been permitted and the person studied and prayed with the energy provided by the food, the energy would be elevated to Sanctity. But because the food was forbidden —)

אין החיות שבה עולה ומתלבשת בתיבות התורה והתפלה כמו ההיתר

the vitality contained in it does not ascend or become clothed in the words of Torah and prayer that he studies and prays with the energy of that food as is the case with permitted foods,

מפני איסורה בידי הסטרא אחרא משלש קליפות הטמאות

because it is held captive in the power of the sitra achra of the three uncleankelipot which do not permit the energy of the food to be elevated to Sanctity.

ואפילו הוא איסור דרבנן, שחמורים דברי סופרים יותר מדברי תורה כו׳

This is so even if it is forbidden by reason of a Rabbinic prohibition, for1 “the words i.e., the prohibitions of the Scribes are even more stringent than the words of the Torah.”

Therefore, theyetzer hara (evil impulse) and the force that lusts after forbidden things is also2 “one of the non-Jewish demons,” which is the yetzer hara of the nations, whose souls are derived from the three unclean kelipot.

They therefore lust after forbidden matters, since the forbidden matters, too, derive their energy from the three unclean kelipot.

On the other hand, the evil impulse and the craving force after permissible things even when done solely to satisfy one’s craving in which case, as mentioned earlier, even the permissible matter descends into the utter evil of the three unclean kelipot; still it is3 “one of the Jewish demons”; it is, as it were, a Jewish evil impulse, for it (the vitality of a permitted thing) can be reverted to holiness, as was explained above.4

Since the food itself is permissible, therefore, though it was eaten to satisfy bodily desire, it can still be elevated to holiness (when the person returns to the study of Torah and the service of G‑d). The yetzer hara for forbidden matters, however, is intrinsically un-Jewish, i.e., essentially foreign to the Jew’s character. As explained elsewhere, one acquires this “foreign” yetzer hara by immersing himself in “permitted” pleasures. These so coarsen him that he begins to lust after prohibited matters as well — a desire totally unnatural for the Jew.

אך מכל מקום קודם שחזר לקדושה הוא סטרא אחרא וקליפה

Although the vitality of permitted foods eaten out of bodily desire can revert to holiness through the person’s repentance, nevertheless, before it has reverted to holiness it is sitra achra andkelipah,

וגם אחר כך הרשימו ממנו נשאר דבוק בגוף

and even afterwards (after the person repented and elevated the energy of the food to holiness) a trace of it remains attached to the person’s body,

להיות כי מכל מאכל ומשקה נעשה תיכף דם ובשר מבשרו

since each item of food and drink that one ingests immediately becomes blood and flesh of his flesh.

Since the food which became his flesh and blood was evil at the time of consumption — having been eaten for the sake of bodily pleasure — a trace of the kelipah remains in the body even after the person has repented and elevated the vitality of the food to holiness.

That is why the body must undergo the “Purgatory of the Grave” (a specific punishment for the body5) in order to cleanse it and purify it of the uncleanness which it had received from the enjoyment of mundane things and pleasures, which are from the impurity of thekelipat nogah and of the “Jewish demons” (i.e., the “Jewish yetzer hara” which desires permitted matters);

אלא אם כן מי שלא נהנה מעולם הזה כל ימיו

unless one had never derived enjoyment from this world all his life (i.e., either he actually derived no enjoyment, or his enjoyment was not of this world, since all his actions were completely for the sake ofmitzvot and holiness),

כרבינו הקדוש

as was the case withRabbeinu HaKadosh (Rabbi Judah the Prince, who said at the time of his demise that he had had no enjoyment of this world even to the extent of his “small finger”).

He who never derived pleasure from this world all his life need not undergo the “Purgatory of the Grave.” However, anyone who has not attained this level must undergo this punishment to purify his body of the uncleanness received from the enjoyment of mundane pleasures.

* * *

We shall now learn what is necessary for the rectification of permitted words not spoken for the sake of heaven.

ועל דברים בטלים בהיתר, כגון עם הארץ שאינו יכול ללמוד

As for innocent idle chatter, such as in the case of an ignoramus who cannot study,

He who is able to study is constantly obligated to fulfill the commandment of studying Torah; for him idle chatter is prohibited. For the ignoramus, however, idle chatter may be permissible. But —

he must have his soul cleansed from the impurity of this kelipah, through its being rolled in the “Hollow of a Sling,”6 as is stated in theZohar, Parshat Beshallach, p. 59.

This punishment is described7 as “being slung from one end of the world to the other,” or “from Israel to other lands.” The meaning of this is that the soul is flung from one extreme to the other: First it is shown the truth and preciousness of holiness, and then it is “slung” into and reminded of the thoughts and words it experienced while in the physical world — a most painful experience for the soul.8

apart from the general retribution for the neglect of positive commandments through indolence, namely the “Purgatory of Snow,” as is explained elsewhere.9

The purgatory (Gehinnom), where the soul is cleansed of the “stains” of sin so that it may enter Paradise to enjoy the radiance of G‑d’s glory, operates on the principle of “measure for measure,” i.e., punishment in kind. Thus sins of commission caused by the heat of passion and lust are cleansed in a “Gehinnom (nehar, lit., ”stream“) of Fire,” while sins of omission, due to indolence and coolness (i.e., lack of fervor), are cleansed in a “Gehinnom of Snow.”10

Occupying oneself with the sciences of the nations of the world is likewise included in the category of engaging in inconsequential matters insofar as the sin of neglecting the Torah is concerned, for in studying the sciences of the nations, too, one is guilty of neglecting Torah study, as is explained in the Laws of Torah Study.11

ועוד זאת, יתירה טומאתה של חכמת האומות על טומאת דברים בטלים

Moreover, the impurity of the science of the nations is greater than the impurity of idle speech;

שאינו מלביש ומטמא רק המדות מיסוד הרוח הקדוש שבנפשו האלקית

for the latter clothe and defile only the emotions [which emanate] from the holy element ofruach (Air) within his divine soul,

[by tainting them] with the impurity of kelipat nogah contained in idle speech (which is derived from the evil element of ruach (Air, which is one of the components) of this kelipah in his animal soul), as mentioned above.

The G‑dly soul and the animal soul are both composed of four spiritual “elements”: Fire, Air, Water and Earth. The emotions, such as love and fear, which one expresses in idle talk, emanate from the element of Air. Thus, idle speech defiles the emotional attributes of the divine soul, which emanate from the holy element of Air, by using them in the service of the animal soul’s element of Air, i.e., its emotional attributes — which are “impure”, since they derive from kelipat nogah.

ולא בחינות חב״ד שבנפשו, מאחר שהם דברי שטות ובורות

[Idle speech does] not, however, [defile] the levels ofChaBaD (the intellectual faculties) in his soul, for it is but words of foolishness and ignorance,

שגם השוטים ועמי הארץ יכולים לדבר כן

since even fools and ignoramuses can speak that way.

Since these are not intellectual matters, the intellect remains uninvolved and untainted.

unless one employs them (these sciences) as a useful instrument, viz., as a means of earning a more affluent livelihood with which to be able to serve G‑d,

או שיודע להשתמש בהן לעבודת ה׳ או לתורתו

or unless he knows how to apply them (the sciences) in the service of G‑d or to his better understanding of His Torah; e.g., he utilizes mathematics to better understand the laws of the Sanctification of the New Moon.

וזהו טעמו של הרמב״ם ורמב״ן ז״ל וסיעתן שעסקו בהן

This is the reason why Maimonides and Nachmanides, of blessed memory, and their peers, engaged in them (in the sciences — since they were able to utilize this knowledge in the service of G‑d and Torah).

Regarding that which was stated at the beginning of this chapter that a thing prohibited even by Rabbinic enactment remains attached to the three unclean kelipot and cannot be elevated to holiness, even when it is used unwittingly and for the sake of heaven (i.e., in order to have strength to study and pray), — the following story is worth relating:

A chassid once came to the Alter Rebbe lamenting the fact that his son-in-law was subject to periods when he would doubt his faith. The Alter Rebbe responded that the son-in-law had unwittingly consumed milk which was milked by a non-Jew, with no Jew in attendance. Though he was unaware of this fact, and though the prohibition against such milk is only of Rabbinic origin, this had so strong an effect upon him that it caused him to doubt his faith. The Alter Rebbe then proceeded to tell the chassid how the matter could be rectified, thereby healing the son-in-law of his spiritual malady.

Rabbi Joseph I. Schneersohn (sixth CHaBaD Rebbe) once stated that reciting from memory words of Torah — such as Chumash, Mishnah, Tehillim or Tanya — whenever one goes about his affairs, protects one from this punishment (in addition to its intrinsic value as Torah study, and its efficacy in “purifying the atmosphere”).

Another interpretation is that the “Gehinnom of Snow” cures the soul of the spiritual “frostbite” which caused it to sin out of indolence. The Rebbe rejects this interpretation on the basis of the passage in Likutei Torah cited in note 8.

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